Woodbine Man Sentenced for Child Porn Charge

New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal says a Woodbine man has been sentenced after being found guilty of coercing a teenage girl from Canada to send him sexually explicit photos of herself.

Shawn Patrick Rose, Jr., 22, of Woodbine was sentenced to five years in state prison. He's also be required to register as a sex offender under Megan’s Law and will be subject to parole supervision for life. According to Grewal, "Rose pleaded guilty on Oct. 31, 2019 to charges of second-degree manufacturing of child pornography and third-degree impairing or debauching the morals of a child in connection with the Canadian victim."

The investigation began when the Division of Criminal Justice received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which had received a referral from an online file hosting service about an account holder who was uploading child pornography. Detectives of the Division of Criminal Justice reviewed videos uploaded by the account holder and confirmed they were child pornography.

Through further investigation, detectives linked the account to email and IP addresses traced to Rose and his residence. In addition, detectives obtained records associated with the email account and a social media site revealing that Rose engaged in sexually explicit chats with underage girls, including a girl, 14, in South Carolina. The investigation revealed that he obtained sexually explicit images of that girl. Detectives contacted the Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office and First Circuit Solicitor’s Office in South Carolina, who charged Rose with contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Rose was arrested in New Jersey on May 11, 2017, when detectives of the Division of Criminal Justice executed a search warrant at his home with assistance from the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office. Detectives found numerous files of child pornography on Rose’s computers and cell phone. A full forensic examination of his cell phone revealed sexually explicit images of the 14-year-old victim in Canada, with whom Rose had engaged in sexual chats on social media and exchanged explicit images. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police assisted the Division of Criminal Justice in the investigation.

“Through this interstate and international investigation, we uncovered an online child predator who, in addition to uploading child pornography, was sexually exploiting underage girls he met on social media,” said Attorney General Grewal. “This case is a cautionary tale for parents, who need to speak to their children about predators like Rose who use social media and chat apps to manipulate victims.”

“Online predators like Rose do not confine their criminal conduct to one state or even one country, and we are grateful to our law enforcement partners in Canada and South Carolina, who helped us ensure that Rose faced justice,” said Director Veronica Allende of the Division of Criminal Justice. “We will continue to conduct these collaborative and proactive investigations targeting online predators, because we have no higher priority than protecting children.”

Rose previously pleaded guilty in South Carolina to the charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. He served 700 days in jail in South Carolina following his arrest in New Jersey.